WSU worked out at Illinois Wesleyan on Thursday morning. Lots of running. Lots of challenging. Assistant coach Earl Grant and graduate assistant Dana Ford gave emphatic talks advising the players to stop feeling sorry for themselves, help out teammates, toughen up, play hard, hate losing and have fun. They spoke with the perspective of guys finished with their playing career. Unfortunately, sometimes that wisdom only comes with age.
Grant and Ford played another important part in the practice. They had to join the scrimmage. Walk-on Bret Michael is still out with a strained muscle in his left thigh. Walk-on Brett Burley is out with a strained hip flexor. That leaves WSU with 10 healthy players. Grant and Ford filled in on the black team with the reserves. I think both of them took charges, which tells you something about hard they played.